10 Timeless Lessons on Better Thinking

The empires of the future are the empires of the mind.Winston Churchill

Our thoughts can make or break our life. Use it well, and we willprosper. Use it badly, and we will suffer. Investing on your mind isperhaps the best investment you can make.

I believe we can learn a lot about it from the great minds of humancivilization, so I read inspiring quotes from them and extracted somelessons on better thinking. Here are 10 timeless lessons I found:

1. Beware of your thoughts

Our best friends and our worst enemies are ourthoughts. A thought can do us more good than a doctor or a banker or afaithful friend. It can also do us more harm than a brick. Frank Crane

Our mind is a double-edged sword. If we fill it with positivethoughts, it will lead us to a productive and fruitful life. But, if wefill it with negative thoughts, it will lead us to a defeated, inferiorlife. So watch your thoughts and be careful not to let negativethoughts occupy your mind.

2. Go beyond mere reading

Readers are plentiful; thinkers are rare.Harriet Martineau

It’s easy to read, but it’s not easy to think about what we read andact upon it. That’s why very few people experience what the books’authors write. If we want to be productive, we should go beyond justbeing readers to being thinkers and doers.

3. Think more

Fewpeople think more than two or three times a year; I have made aninternational reputation for myself by thinking once or twice a week.George Bernard Shaw

Most people do not make conscious effort to think more, but thosewho do will reap the fruit. While many people spend a lot of time forother aspects of their lives such as their occupation and hobbies, onlya few people consciously spend time for thinking.

4. Think at higher level

We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.Albert Einstein

Weshould improve our thinking ability so that we can think at a higherlevel. Only by thinking at higher level can we solve the problems weface. Again, doing so takes effort and one way to do so is mind exercise.

5. Be curious

I have no special talent. I am only passionately curiousAlbert Einstein

Curiosityis an essential ingredient of great thinking. It gives you a strongdesire to know more than most people and makes the journey fun.

6. Be persistent

I think and think for months and years. Ninety-nine times, the conclusion is false. The hundredth time I am right.Albert Einstein

Thinking requires perseverance. Moreoften than not, we can’t get the desired results as soon as we want it.The road to discovery is long, and only with persistence can we hope toreach the destination.

7. State problems the right way

The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution.Bertrand Russell

Many people recognize great thinkers through their ability to solveproblems, but great thinkers are first of all good at formulatingproblems. It is their ability to formulate problems that allows them tofind elegant solutions.

Hammurabi in Babylon changed the course of history byasking the right question when dealing with the problem of water.Instead of asking how to get the people to the water, he asked how toget the water to the people. This led to canals. The rest is history.

8. Emphasize imagination

Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.Albert Einstein

Many people pursue knowledge, but great thinkers emphasizeimagination. While knowledge allows us to make incrementalimprovements, imagination opens the way for fresh breakthroughs.

9. Use intuition

The intellect has little to do on the road todiscovery. There comes a leap in consciousness, call it intuition orwhat you will, and the solution comes to you and you don’t know how orwhy.Albert Einstein

Itmight be surprising, but rational thinking is not always the best wayto think; intuition often gives us better solution. I often experiencethis myself. After thinkingrationally for some time and not finding a solution, I just leave theproblem or sleep on it, and all of a sudden a solution leaps into mymind. Not only is this process less laborious, it often gives me ideaswith higher quality.

10. Dare to be different

It is not worth an intelligent man’s time to be in the majority. By definition, there are already enough people to do that.G.H. Hardy

Great thinkers dare to be different and therefore they thinkdifferently. Rather than just following what other people do, they movebeyond it and go up to a whole new level. Look at your situation andaskyourself: what is the conventional wisdom for your situation? Thendon’t do it, move beyond it instead. This is easier said than done, butthat’s what the great thinkers do.

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These lessons resonate with me. I need to work on emphasizingimagination and daring to be different, among others. Being a greatthinker is a long journey, but the journey is an exciting one